Polo-goal



(No Model.)

RRBAKER.

POLO GOAL.

. Patented Dec. 8, 1885.,

INVENTEIR MQ%% WLTNEEEEE UNITED STATES PATENT (lumen,

FRANKLIN P. BAKER, OF CHELSEA, MASSACHUSETTS.

POLO-GOAL.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 331,756,6ated December 8, 1885.

Application filed December 17, 1884. Serial No. 150,595. [No model.)

If all whom, it may concern.-

Be it known that I, FRANKLIN P. BAKER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chelsea, in the county of Suffolk and State of Massachusetts, have invented an Improved Polo-Goal, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, making part of this specification, lH-WhiCh- Figure 1 is a perspective View of a polo-goal constructed in accordance with my invention. Fig. 2 is a vertical section of the same.

The ordinary goal employed in the game of polo as played in skating-rinks and elsewhereconsists of two upright posts of suitable height placed about six feet apart, it being necessary in order to win a goal to send the ball between the said posts below the level of their tops. This goal has,however,been found obzo jectionable, as disputes frequently arise as to whether a swift ball has actually passed between the posts of the goal, or to one side of the same, or at a point above the level of their tops, thus rendering it oftentimes difficult to determine whether a goal has been fairly won.

To overcome this difficulty is the object of my invention, which consists in a polo-goal composed of a cage or hollow casing formed of wire-netting or other suitable material having an open front provided along its lower edge,with an inclined board or threshold sloping from the level of the floor upward to facilitate the passage of the ball thereover in to the goal, where it is retained and prevented from rolling out by the said threshold, the impact of the ball being received by a piece of netting or other suitable flexible non-elastic material, suspended or otherwise placed withinthe casing, which deadcns the force of the blow of the ball and prevents it from rebounding out of the goal, by which construction, when the ball has once been sent into the casing or receptacle, it is held therein without possibility of escape, thus establislr ing the fact that the goal is won, and avoid ing all controversy or dispute.

In the said drawings, A represents my improved polo-goal, which consists of a cage, casing, or receptacle, preferably composed of wire-netting 0, attached to a metal frame, 6; but this casing may be made of any other suitable material, if desired. The cage A,

which is intended to be placed on the floor or ground, is open in front for the admission of the ball, and is preferably about six feet wide by three feet high and three feet deep, its rear side being curved or inclined from the upper front'edge, cl, down to the level of the floor at the back. I do not, however, confine myself to this particular shape, as the casing may be of rectangular or other suitable form, if preferred.

Extending along the entire front of the goal or casing A is a board or threshold, B, having an inclined upper surface sloping from an edge, 6, level with the floor, to the inner raised edge, f, which is sufficiently elevated above the floor on the inside of the goal to retain the polo-ball after it has once entered the casing, and thus prevent any possibility of disputes as to whether a goal has been fairly won or not.

within the casing A is loosely hung a piece, D, of netting, cloth, or other suitable non elastic yielding material, which is preferably secured near the front top bar of the frame I) to a rod, wire, or cord, 10, and extends from one side to the other of the casing and down to the floor, and again up at the rear,where it is fastened to a rod, wire, or cord, 12, which extends across the width of the casing, a slack or loosely-hanging surface being thus presented, which receives the impact of the ball and prevents it from rebounding out of the goal when oncesent in, the ball on striking the net D falling directly down onto the floor inside the board or threshold B, which thus retains it and prevents it from rolling out of the goal.

Instead of the netD any other suitable surface may be employed which will deaden or absorb the force of the blow of the ball and prevent the latter from rebounding out of the oal. g The above-described goal is of simple construction and renders the game of polo more interesting on account of the certainty with which it establishes the fact of a goal having been fairly won, thus avoiding the necessity of any decision of judge or referee, while it has the further advantage of dispensing with the necessity and expense of four judges on the floor, as heretofore, and avoids all wrangling and disputes, as when once a ball has entered the goal it will remain there until re moved by the referee or other authorized person.

I am aware it is not broadly new to construct a cushion to deaden the sound of a ball or similar device when used in connection with a game apparatus. I am also aware that a flexible belt has been employed to confine the balls of a lawn-pool apparatus, and these features I therefore do not claim.

WVhat I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

I. A polo-goal composed of a casing or re- I ceptacle having an open front provided along its lower edge with an upwardly sloping board or threshold adapted to retain the ball within the goal, and provided with a piece, D, of netting or other suitable fabric, suspended within its interior opposite to the open front, and adapted to receive the impact of the ball and deaden its force, whereby it is prevented from rebounding out of the goal, substantially as described.

2. The combination, with the casing or receptacle A, having an open front, of the board or threshold B,inclined from the floor upward,

and having a raised inner edge, f,and the loosely-hanging net or curtain D, suspended within the casing from a point at or near the top of the same opposite to the open front, and adapted to receive the impact of the ball and deaden the force of its blow, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

3. The combination of the casing A, composed of Wire-netting secured to a frame, b, and having an open front and a curved or inclined back, the board or threshold B extending along the lower edge of the open front of the casing, and sloping from the edge 6 upward, and adapted to retain the ball within the goal, and the net or curtain D, arranged, within the casing in a position to receive the impact of the ball as it enters the goal and: prevent it from rebounding out of the same, substantially as described.

\Vitness my hand this 13th day of Decemher, A. D. 1884.

. FRANKLIN P. BAKER.

In presence of P. E. TESOHEMAOHER, W. J. CAMBRIDGE. 

